The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1887-03-26
ROASTED ALIVE.
Great Fire in Buffalo, N. Y. Richmond
Hotel, st. James Hall and Other
Buildings Consumed-Loss
100000.
A Number or Lives Lost and scores
Terribly Hurt.

Buffalo, n. Y, suffered great calamity
on Friday morning, the 18th inst, by
fire, the third one for the week, which
burned the splendid Richmond Hotel, ct
the corner OF Main and Eagle streets, to-
gether with st. James Hall and other ad-
jacent property. The most distressfui
part of the disaster ia the loss of large
number OF human lives. The rapidly OF
the FIRE, Getting OF all means OF escape,
led some persons to leap for life from the
windows. Others got down the frees
capes, or on Hayes ladders raised 10y the
FIRE department. The shrieks and cries of
the poor people in the upper stories of
the burning structure were hsartrending
Robert Stafford, Sr., proprietor OF the
hotel, with his wife, occupied rooms on tho
second floor and had a narrow escape.
Terror overcamoreverybody, and even
those who escaped<fn safety were in many
cases Frustrated by their awful experiences.
The estima OF the loss OF life was stated
at first to be twelve, but tins Is, In meas
ure, mere guess-work. There were l25 per-
sons in the hotel, seventy of whom wero
transient guests, eight boarders and the
remainder porters, bell-boys, the families
of the proprietors, and clerks. Twenty
two of these were rescued from the win
dows by the firemen, twenty-five were
taken 20 the hospitals, and large num-
Der made their escape by other means.
The spread of the flames is said TO have
been frightful in its rapidity. The ele-
yator shaft served as n ilue for the flames
and they rushed up 20 the top floor in a
very few moments. As the guests were
reused and saw the interior exits cut off
they turned TO the windows. They could
be seen in their niyht-clothes, standing
out clear and vivid before the lurid back
ground OF the flames. Their screams
were horrible 10 hear, and they
could be heard for blocks. The
\ flames spread 20 the southeast side OF the
\ hotel first. The firemen did noble work
\ and confined the fire to the narrow limits
/ of the three buildings named. Their work
/ of rescue had many exciting incidents.
4 Among the guests in the hotel were about
twenty insurance agents who had come on
/ 10 adjust the losses of the great fire mt Mil
4 Ter, Greiner g. Co.'s and the Courier Office
on Tuesday. w. III. Airport, night clerk,
says he was sitting in the Office at 3;iO
o'clock, when no saw a reflection on the
floor. Turning round, he discovered a
blaze in the coat and cloak room directly
under the stairway on the main floor. The
flames at once darted up the eleyator-shaft
with tremendous force and in ON in
credibly short space OF time the interior
of the hotel was filed with smoke anc
flames. Then terrible scenes began. The
second and third alarms brought The en-
tire fire department 60 the scene, but Il
was impossible 10 save any portion OF the
structure. The fire had reached the roo
in less than five minutes from the time IL
was discovered.
Some eye-wiinesses think the loss OF lif,
was largely due Co the delay caused by thu
wires. Clinton Bidwell, of Pittsburgh, lyinl
on an improvised cot at DIR. Hayd's Office
on Niagara street, said; "Look at m,
hands. / tied tho sheets together an'
came down by them. When was mostl!
down a man shot past me who had jumped
He came near striking me. My God, thu
people lay on the roof all about me. The.
were grooming and dying. IL was awful
They died; know they did The skin i
all OF me. l made up my mind woul'
stick 20 the rope and did William j
Mann, one OF the proprietors OF the house
and his wife had thrilling experiences II
getting out.
TIKI LATEST.
II is believed that from IL TO 30 person
were burned, and the number injured vii
not be known for some days. Mr. Aide
had in his room $4,000 worth OF diamonds
and h. T.. Robertson, OF Lambert a Co
had about $4,000 worth, but they were dc
posted in the safe.
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